I’ve covered the importance of training new tasting room staff in a previous article, but just as valuable, is selecting the right people to work in your tasting room in the first place.
Wine knowledge matters, but it isn’t necessarily the most important quality to look for. I’ve always said, “I can teach you wine; I can’t teach you friendly.” A great tasting room employee needs to be personable, adaptable and comfortable engaging with everyone from a first-time wine drinker to a serious collector.
Here are some of my favorite interview questions and techniques to help you find those qualities. As always, consult with your H.R. team before incorporating new questions or practices into your hiring process.
Pay attention before the interview begins
One thing I always did when a candidate showed up before the interview was to let them spend a few minutes with other staff members before asking them to join me in my office. Afterwards, I would ask those employees what their impressions were.
If the candidate was warm and chatty with me but barely acknowledged the other members of the team, that told me something. In a tasting room, how someone interacts with everyone around them matters.
“What draws you to the wine business?”
I’ve always said that looking for work is a terrible job. It’s filled with rejections and there is no pay during the hunt. So, I like to start with a real “softball” question to get the conversation ball rolling.
Listen to what genuinely interests the candidate. Is it wine, meeting new people, learning new things? You aren’t necessarily looking for someone who knows everything about wine, but for someone who enjoys being around people, who is enthusiastic and is eager to learn.
“You arrive a few minutes before opening and there are guests are waiting at the door. What do you do?”
Asking these types of scenario questions can help you understand how people think on their feet.
Personally, in this scenario, I would let them in and explain that we were about to open and get something in their hands, a glass of water or perhaps a splash of wine. What I’m looking for is flexibility and an idea of whether the candidate is naturally hospitable, instead simply telling the guest “It’s 9:58 and we don’t open until 10.”
We can get busy. How do you handle stress?
Tasting rooms can go from quiet to crowded very quickly. A question like this can give you insight into how a candidate can handle pressure.
I had one prospective employee say, “I throw chocolate at it.” which got a big laugh from both me and my assistant manager. This indicated that the candidate had personality, a sense of humor, and the ability to connect, both important traits to look for. By the way it’s always a good idea to have another staff member attend the interview to get a second opinion.
What is your idea of great customer service? Can you give a recent example?
Asking for an example from a restaurant, bank, store or any other public-facing business gives context to what the candidate considers great service. And this type of answer provides context and can tell you much more than a general statement about providing excellent customer service.
On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate your wine knowledge?
The candidates’ wine knowledge may be less important than you think.
If the person rates themselves an 8, 9, or 10 but they are not very gregarious, I’d prefer the person who rates themselves a 3 or 4 but who is warm, friendly and naturally personable.
Wine knowledge can be taught. Genuine hospitality is much harder to teach.
When have you supported a colleague or supervisor by being a team player?
If you ask a candidate “Are you a team player?” the answer you’re going to receive is “absolutely.” Asking for examples will lead to conversation that allows you to get a better sense of the person’s personality and conversational style.
What are your favorite local tasting rooms/ wineries/ varietals?
Questions like these can lead to a spirited conversation and that’s partly the point.
Working in a tasting room requires a certain amount of verbal dexterity. One couple at the tasting bar may be extremely knowledgeable about wine while another is having their first tasting room experience. A good hospitality professional needs to connect comfortably with both.
Use the conversation to ask yourself: Is this person engaging? Can they adjust their communication style? Do they seem genuinely interested in other people?
Why should I hire you?
This is a more “hardball” question that I tend to save for later in the conversation, but it can show you if the candidate is quick on their feet and also gives them another opportunity to articulate what skills they might bring to the team.
What else should I know about you?
This is a classic open-ended question. It’s a good way to signal that the interview is ending and you can get some surprisingly candid answers.
Most importantly, when hiring tasting room staff, you’re not just looking for the person who has the most wine knowledge, you’re looking for someone who can make guests feel welcome, who works well on a team, and who can continue to be engaging even when the tasting room gets busy.
These are just a few of the questions and hiring techniques I cover in my one-day Tasting Room Design and Management course through UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education, offered October 6. Readers interested in taking a deeper dive into tasting room management can find additional information about the UC Davis course and registration here.
Craig Root
Craig Root has more than 30 years experience working with tasting rooms. For more than 13 years, he was first staff and then a successful manager. In the last 20 years, he has consulted with more than 150 tasting rooms (including over 90 start-ups, mostly in the United States but also in China, Canada and France). He is the only person who lectures on tasting room design and management at UC Davis in its continuing and professional development division.